PROPERTIES OF COLLOIDS

BROWNIAN MOTION (named after Robert Brown, who first observed the motion in 1827, when he examined pollen
grains in water), or pedesis (from Greek: πήδησις "leaping") is the assumably random movement of particles suspended
in a fluid (i.e. a liquid such as water or a gas such as air) or the mathematical model used to describe such random
movements, often called a particle theory. Brownian motion deals with the movement of solids from an area of high
concentration to low concentration over a selected permeable membrane.

TYNDALL EFFECT, also known as TYNDALL SCATERRING, is light scattering by particles in a colloid or particles in a fine
suspension. It is named after the 19th century physicist John Tyndall. It is similar to Rayleigh scattering, in that the
intensity of the scattered light depends on the fourth power of the frequency, so blue light is scattered more strongly
than red light.

SEDIMENTATION is the tendency for particles in suspension to settle out of the fluid in which they are
entrained, and come to rest against a barrier. This is due to their motion through the fluid in response to the
forces acting on them: these forces can be due to gravity, centrifugal acceleration or electromagnetism. In
geology sedimentation is often used as the polar opposite of erosion, i.e., the terminal end of sediment transport.
In that sense it includes the termination of transport by saltation or true bedload transport. Settling is the falling
of suspended particles through the liquid, whereas sedimentation is the termination of the settling process.

Sedimentation may pertain to objects of various sizes, ranging from large rocks in flowing water to suspensions
of dust and pollen particles to cellular suspensions to solutions of single molecules such as proteins and
peptides. Even small molecules such as aspirin can be sedimented, although it can be difficult to apply a
sufficiently strong force to produce significant sedimentation.

The term is typically used in geology, to describe the deposition of sediment which results in the formation of
sedimentary rock, and in various chemical and environmental fields to describe the motions of often-smaller
particles and molecules. Process is also used in biotech industry to separate out cells from the culture media.

ELECTROPHORESIS is the motion of dispersed particles relative to a fluid under the influence of a spatially
uniform electric field.This electrokinetic phenomenon was observed for the first time in 1807 by Reuss, who
noticed that the application of a constant electric field caused clay particles dispersed in water to migrate. It is
ultimately caused by the presence of a charged interface between the particle surface and the surrounding fluid.

ELECTROOSMOTIC FLOW (or ELECTRO-OSMOTIC FLOW, often abbreviated EOF; synonymous

with ELECTROOSMOSIS or ELECTROENDOOSMOSIS) is the motion of liquid induced by an applied
potential across a porous material, capillary tube, membrane, microchannel, or any other fluid conduit. Because
electroosmotic velocities are independent of conduit size, as long as the double layer is much smaller than the
characteristic length scale of the channel, electroosmotic flow is most significant when in small channels.
Electroosmotic flow is an essential component in chemical separation techniques, notably capillary
electrophoresis. Electroosmotic flow can occur in natural unfiltered water, as well as buffered solutions
SYNERESIS (also spelled 'synæresis' or 'synaeresis'), in chemistry, is the extraction or expulsion of a liquid
from a gel, as when lymph drains from a contracting clot of blood. Another example of syneresis is the
collection of whey on the surface of yogurt. Syneresis can also be observed when the amount of diluent in a
swollen polymer exceeds the solubility limit as the temperature changes. A household example of this is the
counter intuitive expulsion of water from dry gelatin when the temperature increases. Syneresis has also been
proposed as the mechanism of formation of the amorphous silicate composing the frustule of diatoms

In the processing of dairy milk, for example during cheese making, syneresis is the formation of the curd due to
the sudden removal of the hydrophilic macropeptides, which causes an imbalance in intermolecular forces.
Bonds between hydrophobic sites start to develop and are enforced by calcium bonds which form as the water
molecules in the micelles start to leave the structure. This process is usually referred to as the phase of
coagulation and syneresis. The splitting of the bond between residues 105 and 106 in the κ-casein molecule is
often called the primary phase of the rennet action, while the phase of coagulation and syneresis is referred to as
the secondary phase.

The main characteristic properties of colloidal solutions are as follows.

(1) PHYSICAL PROPERTIES

 

(i) HETEROGENEOUS NATURE: Colloidal sols are heterogeneousin nature. They consists of two phases; the dispersed
phase and the dispersion medium.

(ii)STABLE NATURE: The colloidal solutions are quite stable. Their particles are in a state of motion and do not settle
down at the bottom of the container.

(iii)FILTERABILITY : Colloidal particles are readily passed through the ordinary filter papers. However they can be
retained by special filters known as ultrafilters (parchment paper).                          

(2) COLLIGATIVE PROPERTIES

(i) Due to formation of associated molecules, observed values of colligative properties like relative decrease in vapour
pressure, elevation in boiling point, depression in freezing point, osmotic pressure are smaller than expected.    

(ii) For a given colloidal sol the number of particles will be very small as compared to the true solution.

(3) MECHANICAL PROPERTIES

(i) BROWNIAN MOVEMENT

(a) ROBERT BROWN, a botanist discovered in 1827that the pollen grains suspended in water do not remain at rest but
move about continuously and randomly in all directions.
 

(b) Later on, it was observed that the colloidal particles are moving at random in a zig – zag motion. This type of motion is
called BROWNIAN MOVEMENT.

(c) The molecules of the dispersion medium are constantly colloiding with the particles of the dispersed phase. It was
stated by Wiener in 1863that the impacts of the dispersion medium particles are unequal, thus causing a zig-zag motion
of the dispersed phase particles.

(d) The Brownian movement explains the force of gravity acting on colloidal particles. This helps in providing stability to
colloidal sols by not allowing them to settle down.

(iiDIFFUSION : The sol particles diffuse from higher concentration to lower concentration region. However, due to bigger
size, they diffuse at a lesser speed.

(iii) SEDIMENTATION : The colloidal particles settle down under the influence of gravity at a very slow rate. This
phenomenon is used for determining the molecular mass of the macromolecules.

(4) OPTICAL PROPERTIES: TYNDALL EFFECT

(i) When light passes through a sol, its path becomes visible because of scattering of light by particles. It is called
TYNDALL EFFECT. This phenomenon was studied for the first time by TYNDALL. The illuminated path of the beam is
called TYNDALL CONE.

(ii) The intensity of the scattered light depends on the difference between the refractive indices of the dispersed phase
and the dispersion medium.

(iii) In lyophobic colloids, the difference is appreciable and, therefore, the Tyndall effect is well - defined. But in lyophilic
sols, the difference is very small and the Tyndall effect is very weak.

(iv) The Tyndall effect confirms the HETEROGENEOUS NATURE OF COLLOIDAL SOLUTION.

(v) The Tyndall effect has also been observed by an instrument called ULTRA-MICROSCOPE.

Some example of Tyndall effect are as follows

(a) Tail of comets is seen as a TYNDALL CONE DUE to the scattering of light by the tiny solid particles left by the comet
in its path.

(b) Due to scattering the sky looks blue.   

(c) The blue colour of water in the sea is due to scattering of blue light by water molecules.
 

(d) Visibility of projector path and circus light.

(e) Visibility of sharp ray of sunlight passing through a slit in dark room.             

(5) ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES 

(i) ELECTROPHORESIS

(a) The phenomenon of movement of colloidal particles under an applied electric field is called ELECTROPHORESIS.

(b) If the particles accumulate near the negative electrode, the charge on the particles is POSITIVE.

(c) On the other hand, if the sol particles accumulate near the positive electrode, the charge on the particles is
NEGATIVE.

(d) The apparatus consists of a U-tube with two Pt-electrodes in each limb.

(e) When electrophoresis of a sol is carried out with out stirring, the bottom layer gradually becomes more concentrated
while the top layer which contain pure and concentrated colloidal solution may be decanted. This is called electro
decanation and is used for the purification as well as for concentrating the sol.  

(f) The reverse of electrophoresis is called SEDIMENTATION POTENTIAL or DORN EFFECT. The sedimentation
potential is setup when a particle is forced to move in a resting liquid. This phenomenon was discovered by Dorn and is
also called Dorn effect.

(ii) ELECTRICAL DOUBLE LAYER THEORY

(a) The electrical properties of colloids can also be explained by electrical double layer theory. According to this theory A
DOUBLE LAYER OF IONS APPEAR AT THE SURFACE OF THE SOLID.          

(b) The ion preferentially adsorbed is held in fixed part and imparts charge to colloidal particles.

(c) The second part consists of a diffuse mobile layer of ions. This second layer consists of both the type of charges. The
net charge on the second layer is exactly equal to that on the fixed part.

(d) The existence of opposite sign on fixed and diffuse parts of double layer leads to appearance of a difference of
potential, known as ZETA POTENTIAL or ELECTROKINETIC POTENTIAL. Now when electric field is employed the
particles move (electrophoresis)

 
(iii) ELECTRO-OSMOSIS

(a) In it the movement of the dispersed particles are prevented from moving by SEMIPERMEABLE MEMBRANE.

(b) Electro-osmosis is a phenomenon in which dispersion medium is allowed to move under the influence of an electrical
field, whereas colloidal particles are not allowed to move.

(c) The existence of electro-osmosis has suggested that when liquid forced through a porous material or a capillary tube,
a potential difference is setup between the two sides called as streaming potential. So the reverse of electro-osmosis is
called STREAMING POTENTIAL.